Los Angeles Chargers (11-5) – Houston Texans (11-5) : 16-20
The celebrations continue a bit in Houston with a playoff qualification for the Texans after a match that can be considered won in less than… six minutes! Los Angeles had the opportunities to come back but two foot errors and a loss of ball in front of the end zone put an end to their hopes. For Houston, head to the playoffs!
The people’s two minutes
The evening started in the most beautiful way for the Texans. In 2 drives and 4 passes, CJ Stroud (16/28, 244 yards, 2 TD, 2 int) achieved the trifle of 2 touchdowns for 142 yards to Jayden Higgins and the happy Jaylin Noel! Boom, 14-0 from the start! Opposite, Justin Herbert (21/32, 236 yards, 1 TD, 1 int) suffered two sacks in quick succession on third attempts, a nightmare.
Fortunately for the suspense, the Chargers defense then begins to pull out all the stops. A first interception allows the locals to grab three points. At 14-3, Los Angeles had the opportunity to rally just before the break but the football gods decided to have a little fun. Are you ready for two minutes of madness?
First a pass from Herbert to Oronde Gadsden deflected by the latter and intercepted by Azeez Al-Shaair on the goal line. Then another interception from CJ Stroud. Then a Justin Herbert fumble which he recovered despite his broken hand. Then a missed field goal of 32 yards by Cameron Dicker, the first failure of his career under 40 yards… Did you follow everything? Well done. So it’s still 14-3 for Houston.
Nightmare evening for the superhero Herbert
This is all well and good but the Texans will continue what they have been doing best since the start of the match: putting Justin Herbert under pressure. With 5 sacks, the quarterback will have had a very bad evening. However, he did not deserve anything and tried until the end to bring his team back, via a crazy 28-yard run, via passes thrown while being tackled. But as superhero as he is, he can’t do anything against this defense.
With a small field goal scored after the break, Houston secured a 2 possession lead. A gap that the Chargers will never be able to completely fill. Gadsden will finally receive a pass for a touchdown at the end of the third quarter. Then Omarion Hampton will score on the ground. But that won’t be enough. Particularly because of the extra point missed by Dicker, another costly error.
The result is there: the Houston Texans will be in the playoffs in 2025 after a season that had its ups and downs. And given the defensive power they are capable of deploying, they are not a good draw for any other team in this conference. For the Chargers, next week’s game against the Broncos will undoubtedly be an opportunity to rest the starters before the playoffs. At least Justin Herbert. He will really need it.
